"No, it can't be!!"
Gravik stared at the blazing meteor streaking across the sky, sensing that familiar cosmic energy. Panic consumed him.
"Why is she back? Damn it!"
His face darkened as he transformed into a phantom, fleeing in the opposite direction.
He knew Carol would never allow Skrulls to meddle with Earth.
His actions had clearly crossed her line.
She's here to kill me!
Fear gripped Gravik's heart, memories of the past flooding back.
Back then, neither he nor G'iah had awakened their Super-Skrull genes. The Skrulls were powerless against the Kree onslaught.
It was this woman who saved them.
That scene in particular…
Single-handedly, she scared off the Kree's cosmic fleet!
Carol wasn't just the Kree's nightmare—she was the Skrulls' too.
A single thought from a powerhouse like her could obliterate a weaker race.
Living as a refugee on Earth, his resentment and anger had grown day by day, finally erupting.
He once thought he'd become strong enough to no longer fear Carol.
He was a Super-Skrull now, the universe's mightiest, surpassing even the Kree of old.
But the moment Carol appeared, he realized his fear of her had never faded.
She must be even stronger now.
Run!
Run far away!
Never face this terrifying woman again!
Winds howled as Gravik fled frantically.
But a damnable figure blocked his path.
High above, Apocalypse's eyes rolled back. The White House and everything around it turned to sand, endless grains swirling up to engulf Gravik in an instant.
At the same time, a sandstorm spiraled toward the meteor in the sky.
"Earth's superhero, your body seems even stronger than Spider-Man's…" Apocalypse's gaze was ravenous.
The next moment, a surge of cosmic energy erupted from the sandstorm. His vaunted powers crumbled like dry leaves under its force, tearing his body apart.
BANG!
His armor shattered, fragments of Apocalypse's corpse falling into the ruins.
On the other side, the sandstorm dissipated, and Gravik tumbled into the wreckage, battered.
Before he could flee again, a blinding streak slammed down before him.
BOOM!!
Shockwaves swept outward. Under the crushing pressure of cosmic energy, Gravik's body trembled. He didn't have time to activate his powers before a hand clamped around his throat.
CRACK~~
"Urgh~"
Gravik's body was lifted into the air, struggling in her grip. Cosmic energy flooded his system, ravaging his cells and rendering his powers useless.
He was suffocating.
Not physically, but mentally.
Fear and helplessness consumed him as he gazed pleadingly at the woman before him.
"Spare… spare me… please…"
His voice rasped, as if he'd choke out any second.
Carol tilted her head, studying the Skrull in her grasp. "I think I've seen you before. You were just a kid back then," she said.
At her words, hope flickered in Gravik's eyes. He nodded desperately, trying to speak.
But before he could, Carol shook her head.
"Had I known you'd turn out like this, I should've killed you back then."
Despair crashed over Gravik.
Just as Carol was about to crush his throat, a restored Apocalypse manipulated sand to engulf her feet.
At the same time, Carol felt a mental haze, and suddenly she was inside a starship's interior.
"Where am I?"
In the silent cabin, Carol scanned her surroundings, spotting a blue figure approaching.
"This is your inner world, Earth's superhero. Time to offer me your body."
Apocalypse's voice was commanding, but the next second, a fist sent him flying.
BANG!!
The cabin shook, exposed circuits sparking. Apocalypse, embedded in a metal dent, clutched his cheek, stunned.
"You—"
Carol, wreathed in cosmic energy, floated before him, her gaze imperious.
"Say that again. I didn't hear you."
Apocalypse: "…"
"Earth's superhero, give me your body!!"
He roared, his form swelling massively.
BOOM!!
His colossal body filled the ship, a fist the size of a bus crashing down.
HUM~
Cosmic energy flared. Carol caught the massive fist with both hands, her surprise turning to fury.
"Get lost!!"
BOOM!!!
With a shout, a radiant cosmic beam pierced the ship, shooting into the depths of space.
"No!!"
In the battlefield's ruins, Apocalypse jolted awake, withdrawing his mental probe from Carol's mind, his forehead drenched in sweat.
He stared at the woman before him in terror, then noticed Spider-Man nearby, sneaking in for an attack.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
Charlie: "…"
He quietly tucked away the vibranium dagger Carter had lent him.
"Don't get me wrong. I was just trying to help," he said, spreading his hands.
Apocalypse's face darkened. He vanished into a spatial tunnel, reappearing a hundred meters away, keeping his distance from Carol.
"Spider-Man, does our deal still stand?" he asked.
Charlie nodded. "Of course."
At that, Carol casually tossed Gravik aside, sizing Charlie up curiously.
"You're Spider-Man?" she asked calmly.
"Yep. Looks like even a newcomer like you has heard of Spider-Man's tales."
Charlie nodded, then glanced at Gravik, paralyzed with fear nearby.
"He's my target."
Carol's lips curved slightly. "I saved the Skrulls. Only I get to deal with their traitors."
Charlie scratched his head. "Fine, he's yours."
He stepped back, signaling goodwill.
Apocalypse, seeing this, shouted, "Spider-Man, she's the Skrulls' ally! We need to team up!"
Before he finished, Carol's eyes blazed with cosmic energy, unleashing a burst of cosmic rays.
"I wasn't talking to you. Shut up!"
BOOM!
Apocalypse summoned an energy shield, barely holding back Carol's "gaze."
"Damn it, Spider-Man, do something!!"
As his shield began to crack under the cosmic onslaught, Apocalypse dropped all pretense.
Charlie frowned at the scene.
This universe's Captain Marvel seemed absurdly strong.
Was it the power of the Infinity Stones?
Charlie wasn't sure.
From the start, he'd never found any trace of Infinity Stones in this universe.
If this Captain Marvel didn't have their power…
Then she was even stronger!
Her mental strength was boundless, converting solar energy into other forms—superhuman strength, lightspeed flight, photon blasts, and free movement in space.
Simply put, Captain Marvel was another version of Superman!
In a flash, Apocalypse's shield shattered.
HUM~
Before the cosmic energy could destroy him, Apocalypse teleported away.
"I'll be back!!"
Neither his mental powers nor his abilities could match Carol's. He could only retreat.
Carol didn't care about Apocalypse's escape, but Charlie couldn't let it slide.
Apocalypse and Gravik had outlived their usefulness. They had to go.
With that, he raised a hand, conjuring a portal.
HUM~
As the portal flickered, Carol shot past Charlie in a streak of light.
Clearly, she wanted to continue their "conversation."
But the next second, Charlie doubled back, closing the portal instantly.
"Lady, brute strength alone isn't enough. You need brains too."
Carol was teleported to the other side of the planet. Charlie grinned.
Turning, he slammed a palm into Gravik's chest. The Skrull's soul flickered out, and Charlie crushed it in his grip.
"Perfect. Problem solved."
Leave a little wiggle room, and no Resurrection Match for you.
[You, the friendly neighborhood hero, eliminated the Skrull rebel leader. Retry count +11.]
The prompt made Charlie quite pleased.
Adding in his previous rewards—ending Kraven the Hunter's ritual and defeating the Morlun family's Kain, plus taking down the symbiote beast and soloing the entire Spider-Man alliance—his retry count was nearing…
Wait!
Charlie suddenly realized.
I'm not dead yet!
Why am I tallying retries?
Could it be—
The next second, a streak of light tore through the night sky, landing in the ruins. Carol hovered above, her cosmic energy blazing like a small sun.
Her eyes glinted with amusement. "Spider-Man, you underestimated me."
Charlie's mouth twitched. "No way. Actual lightspeed flight?"
On second thought, if spatial teleportation existed, lightspeed flight wasn't too far-fetched.
He just hoped it was only lightspeed flight, not lightspeed fists.
"I'm giving him back to you. Let's not keep this up. We're both superheroes—gotta give each other some face, right?"
Charlie tossed Gravik toward her, but Carol waved a hand, and Gravik's body disintegrated into countless particles under her cosmic energy.
Charlie: "!!!!"
"What the hell!!" he yelled, clutching his head.
Resurrection Match contestant +1.
Damn Captain Marvel! If I wasn't scared of losing, I'd teach you a lesson right now!
Charlie roared inwardly.
Carol, of course, had no idea what was going through his mind.
Arms crossed, she looked down at the bug on the ground with an air of superiority.
"I know about Nick Fury. He's my friend. I need to do something for him."
Charlie took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to curse.
"So?"
"So, you and your team leave S.H.I.E.L.D. and publicly apologize to Nick Fury." Carol's face was cold, her cosmic energy surging unrestrained.
This could be a discussion—or a threat.
Before Charlie could respond, Carter's voice came through his earpiece.
"Agree to it. I can't stand S.H.I.E.L.D. anymore. In less than six months, I've got wrinkles. I'm out—definitely out!" Her voice carried a sense of relief.
But Charlie knew she didn't really mean to abandon S.H.I.E.L.D.
After all their efforts, she wouldn't give up so easily.
It was just that Carol's pressure was suffocating. Carter didn't think they could win.
No one knew better than her the cost of Spider-Man's invincibility.
She'd only fought in two Resurrection Matches, somehow coming out on top both times.
But she knew without Charlie, her chances of winning a Resurrection Match were near zero.
And she was worried about him.
Carol's power was undeniable.
Even Apocalypse, the so-called god of mutants, could only flee in disgrace.
The invincible Spider-Man had no shot.
Even if he could enter a Resurrection Match, Charlie didn't always win.
One mistake, and Carter couldn't imagine the consequences.
She couldn't lose Spider-Man, just like the West couldn't lose Jerusalem.
Charlie understood her concern.
But he'd already taken a step back.
One step was enough.
Another, and where would the invincible Spider-Man's reputation go?
No way he'd let his fanbase drop!
With that, Charlie declared firmly, "I! Won't!"
At his words, the amusement in Carol's eyes deepened. She'd finally found her excuse.
Carter's face paled. "You're insane! This is pointless. We can't win."
"Can't win? Don't know those words."
Charlie raised a hand, a red-and-blue spider crawling onto his wrist.
This fight wasn't about saving the world.
He just couldn't stand her high-and-mighty attitude.
…
Meanwhile, Harry and the others, watching the battlefield through reporters' lenses, sensed something was wrong.
"My friend, whatever you do, I've got your back," Harry said, eyes resolute. He turned and abandoned his current mission, heading for New York.
…
In another city's skies, arcs of electricity streaked through the night.
Max pushed himself to the limit, racing toward New York. "Idol, hold on! I'm coming!"
"Me too!"
On the ground, Aleksei piloted his Rhino mech, charging through the streets.
…
At Stark Tower, a pale Tony dragged his heavy body to his feet.
"You sure you want to keep using the suit?" Pepper asked, tears in her eyes as she supported him.
Tony gave a bitter smile. "Better to die for something meaningful than let palladium poison me. Giving this life back to Spider-Man? Not a bad deal."
Pepper didn't try to stop him.
She knew this was the last shred of Iron Man's dignity.
…
In an office at the tower, Quentin Beck raised his right hand, eyes blazing as he addressed his team.
"Guys, grab our weapons. Let's take down that arrogant woman!"
"Yeah, take her out!"
"No one but Spider-Man gets to act that cocky in front of us!"
The visual effects team roared with passion.
…
On a shopping street, a burly man in a striped shirt held his daughter's hand.
Father and daughter looked up at the plaza's big screen.
The footage zoomed in on Carol's face, her sneer and mockery clear, proof of her ill intentions toward Spider-Man.
"Daddy, that woman looks really strong. Can you help Spider-Man?" the little girl, recently recovered from illness, asked with wide eyes.
William's heart trembled. He crouched down, gently patting her head, his voice warm.
"Of course, sweetheart. Spider-Man saved your life. I'd give mine for him."
With that, he roared, his body dissolving into a storm of sand, surging toward Washington.
…
Atop the Empire State Building, Gwen sat cross-legged beneath the antenna.
She stared at the black meteorite before her, lost in thought.
At Abi's prompting, she snapped back to reality.
"I can feel that woman's power—it's beyond imagination," the demonic force said slowly.
Hearing this, Gwen glanced at the distant screen and stood abruptly.
"Then we have to help him!"
"But our power's too weak right now."
"Doesn't matter. We'll get stronger."
Gwen bent down, picking up the black meteorite.
This was the symbiote meteorite Charlie had entrusted to her, but something about the symbiote inside seemed off.
"You sure you want to take that power?" Abi hesitated. "I don't know if I can consume it. If I fail, you'll lose yourself too."
"I know."
Gwen took a deep breath, tearing off the webbing around the meteorite, letting the black symbiote crawl onto her body.
"We can't let him face that monster alone.
He can die, but no one gets to bully him!"
As the symbiote cells bonded with her, Gwen saw Charlie's figure through its memories.
No—there were others. Doctor Octopus, Professor Xavier, Aunt May, Ben Parker, and…
In the symbiote's perspective, the woman Charlie fought so hard to save was her!
Gwen's eyes dimmed.
______
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